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As of Thursday, about 9,300 Central Florida residents who need long-term care — the vast majority of them seniors — will become the first participants in a statewide move to enroll almost all Medicaid beneficiaries in HMOs and other types of managed-care plans.

JIM SAUNDERS, THE NEWS SERVICE OF FLORIDA

More than two years after Florida lawmakers passed a controversial plan to transform the Medicaid system, it’s showtime.

As of Thursday, about 9,300 Central Florida residents who need long-term care — the vast majority of them seniors — will become the first participants in a statewide move to enroll almost all Medicaid beneficiaries in HMOs and other types of managed-care plans.

The transformation will not happen quickly: Region by region, low-income people will gradually move into the managed-care system during the rest of this year and throughout most of 2014, with the changes first affecting people who need long-term care and later the broader Medicaid population.

But after years of debate, planning and gaining federal approval, Thursday is a pivotal day in a Medicaid system that serves more than 3 million Floridians.

Dudek, Medicaid Director Justin Senior and state Elder Affairs Secretary Charles Corley will take part Thursday in a launch event in the Brevard County community of Rockledge. The first phase of the changes will affect long-term care beneficiaries in Brevard, Orange, Seminole and Osceola counties.

Broadly, the goal is to use managed care to provide services that will help as many seniors as possible stay in their homes or communities, rather than going into nursing facilities. But the changes have been controversial --- and remain so as the state moves forward.

Jack McRay, advocacy manager for AARP Florida, said Wednesday the four-county region in central Florida will be the “guinea pig” for long-term care changes that his organization has questioned. He said AARP wanted the state to conduct a pilot program before starting the shift to a statewide managed-care system for seniors, but was rebuffed by lawmakers.

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